Diet

Diet can make a difference. Some research and case studies have shown that strict adherence to a diet involving elimination of all possible food-related headache triggers (such as chocolate, nitrite-preserved meats, aged cheese, broad beans, MSG, and excessive salt) can lead to significant improvement in patients who do not respond to other treatments. Subtle drops in blood sugar levels can trigger headaches.

Prevention steps include eating regularly, not skipping meals, as well as experimenting with eating multiple small meals during the day at intervals of three to four hours. A recent study completed in Oregon found a 50% improvement in migraine frequency, with significant reductions in headache duration and severity for patients who participated in a program that emphasized strict dietary regulation and avoidance of all known environmental triggers. The medication program in this study was very conservative and avoided the use of analgesics with rebound potential as well as prescription preventive medications.

What foods can provoke a headache?

People with headache do not suffer from headache because of food-related issues. Even when a particular food does seem to provoke a headache attack, it may be an "inconsistent trigger" which is not always capable of provoking such an attack. It is widely believed that internal biological factors more than anything else determine when and if a headache attack will occur. Therefore, external trigger factors, such as foods, may be more or less likely to provoke an attack, based upon internally determined vulnerability.

The foods listed below have been known to trigger attacks based upon this vulnerability.